European Union officials have offered Britain several olive branches to try to prevent a summit on Friday (27 June) ending in isolation and defeat. But Prime Minister David Cameron has rejected them, preferring to make a stand on principle and refusing to approve Jean-Claude Juncker as the next President of the European Commission.

EU officials have asked what post in the European Commission Britain might want, what its top priorities for the coming years are and how it thinks the biggest EU jobs should be assigned, but Cameron has avoided the discussion.

EU sources said European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, who will chair the summit, struggled to find any room for manoeuvre in a tense 30-minute meeting with the British leader in London on Monday.

Instead, British officials say, Cameron is determined to make a point about what he sees as the EU following a wrongheaded process in nominating the next Commission president, as well as choosing the wrong person for the job, even if it costs Britain much-needed allies.

“Some principles are worth fighting for,” said one person familiar with Cameron’s thinking. “He believes in this one. He doesn’t agree in giving power to the European Parliament and he won’t be bought off.”

Part of Cameron’s calculation appears to be that he wants to be able to go before the British people next week and say he spoke truth to his fellow EU leaders and stood his ground, rather than compromising on a divisive issue like Europe.

Whereas other leaders, British officials say, have expressed private reservations about the process and the choice of Jean-Claude Juncker for Commission president, only Cameron has been bold enough to make the case publicly. Honesty, he hopes, will score him points domestically.

Asked what would happen after the summit on Friday, a British official said Cameron would address parliament and the people next Monday and give his account.

“It will be a very clear message,” the official said.

From Europe’s point of view, however, Cameron’s strategy could hardly be more opaque.

“Cameron doesn’t seem to have a strategy for what happens after Friday,” said a European diplomat briefed on Van Rompuy’s meeting. “The talks were not constructive at all. Cameron showed no way out, which makes it very difficult.”

Drifting towards ‘Brexit’?

While it is possible that a change of mind could happen in the next three days, with either Cameron shifting position or one or more sympathetic leaders deciding they want to stand by him, neither outcome is very likely.

Instead, it increasingly looks as though Van Rompuy will have call a vote on Juncker, a former prime minister of Luxembourg whom Britain argues is too ‘old-school’ and federalist-minded for modern Europe.

Asked if he would be nominated as president by the weekend, Juncker said on a visit to Berlin: “If healthy common sense prevails then this will happen by the end of the week. But healthy common sense, it seems, is very unequally distributed.”

If a vote is held – which would be unprecedented in recent history, since EU leaders normally operate by consensus – it is possible Cameron will lose it by 26-2, with only Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on his side.

Orban, something of an authoritarian pariah in the EU, reaffirmed his objection on Tuesday to the European Parliament’s drive to impose Juncker as Commission president.

“The basic stance for Hungary is that treaties must be observed,” Orban told a news conference after talks with other central European leaders.

That would mirror Britain’s isolation at a summit in December 2011, when Cameron vetoed new fiscal rules for the euro zone, a position only the Czech Republic shared at the time, although it too has now backed the fiscal compact. Other EU leaders got around the British blockade by concluding a separate treaty outside the EU framework.

Other erstwhile British allies despair at Cameron’s tactics, as a leaked tape-recording of Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski published on Monday showed. In it, the Oxford-educated Anglophile said Cameron was incompetent or reckless, and was strengthening British Eurosceptics by appeasing them instead of standing up to them.

Cameron has suggested that Van Rompuy delay a vote and instead wait until all the EU’s top jobs – including a new European Council president, a foreign policy chief and a chairman of euro zone finance ministers – have been agreed.

But officials say Van Rompuy will not delay, in part because if he stops the clock, the European Parliament could pass a resolution effectively forcing EU leaders to nominate Juncker anyway. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has suffered domestic scorn after she initially tried to placate Cameron, is also keen to avoid any prolonged standoff.

The concern among European leaders is that Britain is moving inexorably towards an EU exit after 41 years of membership, even though Cameron has said that is not what he wants and there is no obvious reason for it to happen.

With some opinion polls showing that a majority of Britons would prefer to leave the club, and Cameron having promised an in/out referendum by the end of 2017 if he is re-elected next year, an inevitability is building that even a well organised and well financed campaign to stay in might fail to stop.

Background

Following the European Parliament elections, 2014 will bring about change in many of the top positions in the European Union.

Traditionally, EU jobs are the result of a hard bargaining process between the member states and the European Parliament.

Top positions are allocated on the basis of nationality and political allegiance, reflecting a careful representation of countries and of the political power balance in Europe.

The positions that will become available in the course of this year are:

The European Commission presidency, currently held by José Manuel Barroso who will step down when the current Commission's term ends;

The European Council presidency, currently held by Herman Van Rompuy, who has announced he will retire after his term expires in late November;

The EU high representative for foreign and security policy, currently held by Catherine Ashton, who will step down when the current Commission's term ends;

NATO secretary general, currently held by Danish liberal Anders Fogh Rasmussen, which becomes available on 1 October.

Comments

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I even as an E.U. citizen don’t understand Him (Cameron) anymore!
Thought he would respect at least a little bit of democratic rules we voted for !
Anyway , for not struggling again like this i would urge as Tony Blair said in 2009 : a real E.U. President with direct election would be real Europness !
If leader’s of states couldn’t give that opportunity to citizens then i fear that this Europe for remaining powers on chief-selfs only would end in a continental tragedy !

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Antmatt

25/06/2014 12:31

Cameron is PRO-EU but thanks to law of unintended consequences the EU’s back door power grab will trigger a referendum in the UK thanks to the 2011 referendum lock law. Cameron is trying desperately to prevent this happening hence his total panic & appeals to other EU leaders to stop what they are doing. The EU itself has forced a situation that he & the other PRO-EU parties have been trying to avoid at all costs. As soon as Juncker is appointed he will be forced by law to call a referendum not in 2017 when he hoped to have… Read more »

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an european

25/06/2014 13:52

PRO-EU ? He was it before breaching a fundamental treaty which is the basic of european democracy ! The British Exit is long pré-programmed already ! Because England seems have an issue how to understand how the European Union is govern and not by “panic” ! There is no way for Cameron to regress the this situation anymore because for this it’s too late ! See Youtube is full of U.S. and E.U. from british (not only) hate Speech ! Not British but England’s History shows their dark side again! We have seen their behavior during the American revolution !… Read more »

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Hoover

26/06/2014 08:49

He breached a fundamental EU treaty?

How and when did he do this?

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an european

02/07/2014 13:47

By wanting to breach the Art.17 §7 !

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Joe Thorpe

25/06/2014 14:59

I couldn’t agree more, He is desperate to avoid a referendum no matter how it makes him look in Europe but if the competence of selecting the leader of the commission moves from the heads of governments to the EU Parliament he will be obliged to stand up the following Monday in the House of Commons & as agreed even by the LibDems & announce an In/Out referendum which has has stated he would campaign to stay a member of on the terms he has negotiated but as he wont have negotiated a better arrangement I’d assume he will have… Read more »

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an european

25/06/2014 09:04

Taking into account that England will exit anyway either now or at least in 2017 !
England why because it may be that Scots remains independent!

Leader should be very very carefull !
I would say rather either Citizen or Cameron ‘s colonial dictate mentality!

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an european

25/06/2014 10:01

At least :
“EU following a wrongheaded process in nominating the next Commission president, as well as choosing the wrong person for the job, even if it costs Britain much-needed allies”

Mr Juncker is far more competent than Cameron’s other british selfinterests for the Comission Presidency!
This should be clear !

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the Englishman

25/06/2014 11:13

Whilst I am not a fan of Cameron at least he is understanding of the millions who voted in protest against the EU in the recent ellections. Non of the other leaders seem to take that no board. They just seen to be saying to the voters ‘We know best, you will do as Germany and the rest of us tell you so shut up and do as your told’ Democracy the EU way, ingnore millions? Lets face it more than half of the voters couldn’t be bothred, of the 43% that could a large slice voted against the EU… Read more »

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an european

25/06/2014 12:04

ha !

43% or 29% is irrelevant !
at least all the other Leaders respects that little democracy of the art.17 and the E.U. parliament and it’s Citizens !
But this doesn’t interests Inglander because they want to kipp and splitt for exiting quicker !

Cameron again is a disgrace to be keen if it comes to british banksta sector ! First Cameron should adopt the Euro and then dictate but not first !
If that doesn’t taste him then he should get a new taste !

El Pluribus Unum

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an european

25/06/2014 13:04

ha !

43% or 29% is irrelevant !
at least all the other Leaders respects that little democracy of the art.17 and the E.U. parliament and it’s Citizens !
But this doesn’t interests Inglander because they want to kipp and splitt for exiting quicker !

Cameron again is a disgrace to be keen if it comes to british banksta sector ! First Cameron should adopt the Euro and then dictate but not first !
If that doesn’t taste him then he should get a new taste !

El Pluribus Unum

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an european

25/06/2014 13:15

Sorry for double post

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Gerry

25/06/2014 11:55

Cameron has certainly got himself in a terrible bind. Thanks to the conservatives treating Europe with such dislike, thanks to the waves of hostility caused by defective immigration policies, Cameron has no choice but to be the Eurosceptic. In reality however, Cameron knows very well that Britain would be much better off if it could simply be part of it all. He can see the boat of EU unification steam right up to his door but he cannot get a foot onboard because of the panicking crowds that are blocking the way. So he figures that in order to give… Read more »

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the Englishman

25/06/2014 13:02

But Gerry does the British PM have a duty to listen and speak for the UK voters that obviously don’t like the EU as it is? You seem to be saying that he should only listen to what he wants to and ignore the rest, which has to be said is a sizable minority. I mean 24 seats cannot be thrown to one side and dismissed as swivel eyed xenophobic racist. Were talking about democrtaically elected MEP’s voted for by the British public. Do they not deserve some representation by their PM? After all this German Puppet Junkers is being… Read more »

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an european

25/06/2014 13:13

Who is governing the U.K. U.S. 50 states ?
It’s clear where the European Union is heading !
But what’s the Point of that?

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Joe Thorpe

25/06/2014 15:07

Judging by the quality of your English it’s clearly one of Putin’s puppeteers pulling your strings. Why don’t you preach your diatribe on a site with your own language then you won’t irritate us & we wont irritate you.

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GeorgeMc

01/07/2014 23:23

I have read her posts on the french website and via Google translate they are understandable. Post on here in French and Google translate will save the day.

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an european

02/07/2014 10:36

because this is an european diatribe not an english one !
If my language doesn’t taste you the simply don’t vomit!

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evad666

26/06/2014 08:05

Now who said “Irrespective of what the electorate wish EU expansion will continue”? European Dignity Watch reported:- On April, 21st, 2011, Juncker explained his understanding of political integrity at a conference: Referring to the way he and the EU deals with the Euro crisis and the financial market, he said: “I have to lie. I’m a Christian democrat and a Catholic, but when it becomes serious, you have to lie”. “We all know what to do, but we don’t know how to get re-elected once we have done it.” Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of Luxembourg and President of the Eurogroup.… Read more »

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an european

02/07/2014 10:59

No at least he is honest informing it publicly ! lying and lying is not the same ! You have to taken in account on what the sentence was related on !

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evad666

27/06/2014 06:28

Since the question of Mr Junckers position came to the fore I have reviewed the election correspondence I received from all the parties and can find nothing about the following parties:- The EPP The S&D The ECR The ALD The GUE/NGL The Greens/EFA The EFD NI Others I have been asked to vote for parties who might become parts of these groups not these groupings which are built after the results are known. This is grossly dishonest and one could argue corrupt. The groupings should be formed prior to elections and these groups should clearly campaign on their manifestos during… Read more »